HAYESVILLE – The cement basketball court at Josh Cottrell's home has always acted as center stage for his college sports fantasies.

Growing up, Cottrell played out last-second-shot scenarios and imaginary comeback battles. The situation would change, but his dream location did not.

"I'd always pretend I was shooting in the Ramsey Center," Cottrell said, referring to Western Carolina University's basketball arena. "It's where I always wanted to be."

Next season, Cottrell will get to live out that dream.

The Hayesville senior guard signed with the Catamounts in November, declining several other collegiate offers. Cottrell said he wanted to end his recruitment during the early signing period so he could focus on his senior season with the Yellow Jackets.

He has stayed true to his word.

Behind his team-high 27.8 points and 8.0 rebounds per game, Hayesville (13-3, 5-1) has equaled its win total from last year and earned a No. 6 spot in the NCPreps.com state rankings. They also rank as the No. 10 team in 1A, according to Maxpreps.com.

"He's seen about every kind of defensive strategy to stop him," said coach Michael Cottrell, who has led the Yellow Jackets for 19 years and is also Josh's father. "But he's able to shoot with tremendous range, and he has the ability to find the open guy. He's just an all-around good player."

Hayesville's run through the first half of the season has been even more impressive considering its four freshmen on the roster. Josh said he's excited to see the progression of the underclassmen, including freshman Blake McClure, who is second on the team with 9.5 points a game.

"These guys don't play like freshmen, and that has been huge for us," said Josh, who also leads the team in assists and steals. "It lets me know when I'm gone that we will have guys who can step up."

Josh's shooting ability has landed him into the record books at Hayesville. During a Jan. 5 Smoky Mountain Conference game against Swain County, he finished with a school-record 44 points, nearly outscoring the entire Maroon Devils team in a 67-48 win.

Last year, while leading the conference in scoring, he broke the school-record for most points in a season with 507. He's also nearing the school record for most career points, held by his older brother Zach Cottrell (1,938 points).

While Josh is chasing his brother for a piece of school history this season, he may run into him on the basketball court next year. The two are the only Hayesville players in school history to sign with a Division I basketball program.

Zach is a sophomore small forward at Appalachian State and the 2015-16 Citizen Times All-WNC boys basketball player of the year. WCU and Appalachian State regularly play during the regular season.

"It's kind of a dream come true to get to play against him," Josh said. "Maybe I'll even get to guard him a little."

Their father seems a little less excited about the prospect.

"I guess I'll have to wear gold since both teams wear that color," said Michael, laughing. "That will be an interesting night for us."